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Topics: News, World News, Taylor Swift
Kit Roberts
Taylor Swift concertgoers could be heard shouting for water during a concert in Rio de Janeiro.
Swift has started the South American leg of her Eras Tour, which includes dates in Rio.
But one concert in particular in the city was plagued by soaring temperatures as the city baked in a heatwave.
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One fan, 23-year-old Ana Clara Benevides, was taken to hospital after reportedly fainting ahead of the concert, where she tragically died shortly after arriving.
Fans at the concert have given insight into the horrendous heat they endured during the performance.
Swift even paused the set to urge staff members to distribute water among concertgoers, who could be heard chanting 'we need water'.
She said: “It’s very hot, so if somebody says they need water when it’s this hot they really need it."
Swift has also announced that a further date has been postponed.
But one US concertgoer posted a video to TikTok where he described the conditions in the concert, combining sweltering heat with a heaving venue which made it difficult to get help to people who needed it.
He said: “People were really struggling, right in front of me, I saw a girl faint. When we tried to call for help, nobody was able to really come.
“Throughout the show, people who were closer to the stage area actually started to leave because it was too hot for them.”
Another said: “It felt [like] 140 degrees. It’s a freaking heat wave."
They even claimed that the Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos had not been allowing fans to bring in their own water bottles.
They added that some fans had chosen not to get water once inside because 'they didn’t want to lose their seats'.
The fan said: “Taylor herself had to hand out water when she has hundreds of thousands of people there to help us out."
They said that staff at the stadium had 'tried' to give out water 'but it wasn’t enough.'
“I was there. I was dying of heat exhaustion," they said, "I was like, almost passing out."
A statement from the National Institute of Meteorology has said that Brazil is currently facing 'great danger' from an ongoing heatwave.
The statement added that parts of the country face 'a high probability of major damage and accidents, with risks to physical integrity or even human life'.
Responding to the death of Benevides, Swift wrote: “I can’t believe I’m writing these words but it is with a shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show.
“I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this.”